Everything but the kitchen sink

This recipe is great for those nights when you need to clean out the fridge or you have some odds and ends veggies that are about to turn and no idea what to do with them. I had some veggies I needed to get rid of some things, so into the pan with some ground beef they went.
This is also slightly reminiscent of the beef stew over rice that we used to have when I was a kid. Not reminiscent in taste but in the idea and the memory of it.

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 2-3 medium carrots, diced
• 1 bunch of celery, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 8 oz of mushrooms, diced
• 2 tbsp coconut aminos or worchestershire
• 1-2 tbsp coconut oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Cauliflower rice (instructions at the bottom)
• Pats of butter (optional)

Start by heating your pan over medium heat, once heated through melt coconut oil. I recommend using the whole 2 tbsp since the mushroom will suck a lot of the oil up. They will shrink down as they cook releasing tasty juices but its best to have extra oil in the pan so nothing sticks. When the oil is melted add all of the veggies to the pan, except the garlic, and salt and pepper to your liking. When the onions get to the near translucent phase (a little white in the middle still) add in the garlic. Once the onions are translucent add in the beef and coconut aminos and cook until the beef is no longer pink.

I serve this over cauliflower rice with a couple of pats of Kerrygold butter (the butter goes on the rice then the beef mixture goes over that).

Cauliflower Rice
Take one head of cauliflower and grate with either a box grater or a food processor with a grater attachment. I have a microwave steamer so I add the rice to that and cook for about 3 or 4 minutes. That is cauliflower rice. Seriously, its that easy. Now I'm not going to lie to you and say its just like regular rice, but it is a good substitute and now you don't need to serve a veggie on the side.

Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

I got the inspiration for this the other day at Crossfit (I know a weird place to be thinking about food) and I couldn't get the idea out of my head. These meatballs are really tasty and they come together really quickly, great for a busy week night and can even be made ahead of time.

Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

Makes 16 meatballs

Cook time: 20 minutes

• 2 ½ lbs ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp each: sea salt, pepper, onion powder & garlic powder*
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
• ½ ball of mozzarella, cut into 16 cubes
• Jarred or homemade marinara sauce (if using jarred be sure to check for funky ingredients)
• Parmesan cheese for garnish

Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees and lining a large jellyroll pan with foil. In a large bowl add the beef, eggs and seasoning. Now here is the fun part, get in there with your hands and mash everything together until its evenly combined.

Now take some of the meat mixture and make a small patty like a hamburger. I didn't measure this part, just eyeballed it but it was just enough meat to fill my palm. Place a cube of cheese in the middle.

Push the edges of the patty together to form a ball making sure it is sealed to prevent any melty cheese accidents when cooking.

Place meatballs onto prepared baking sheet and space evenly.

Put in preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes. In the last 5 minutes of baking start heating your marinara sauce, to be spooned over the meatballs.

When the meatballs are done, remove them from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. Don't worry if you had some cheese explosions during cooking, they will still taste great.

Serve topped with marinara sauce and grated Parmesan cheese (which I didn't have when I made this, but have since rectified the situation, lesson learned)

*The spice container in the first picture at the top of the page labeled "SPOG" is filled with equal parts Himalayan Sea Salt, Pepper, Onion powder & Garlic powder. It is my go to seasoning for practically anything that isn't dessert. I highly recommend this setup, its a time saver for sure.